Alongside the mountains, there's one natural landmark Kyrgyzstan is pretty well known for, and that is lake Issyk Kol. i say that since it was the one other natural landmark in the country I was aware of before arriving. From what I knew, it is the second largest Alpine lake in the whole world, taking up a significant portion of the country's area, and personally, it was something I thought would be interesting to visit. Therefore I did.

My first encounter came during my trip across the country from Bishkek to Karakol. As I hopped in the marshrutka to start the journey, I eagerly readied myself for what was to come next. The first two hours passed with just mountains, roads and villages, but then, something different appeared. Something blue and large. We got closer and then it became clear. With snow-peaked mountains and dusty red cliffs on all sides, this giant pool of water sat, clear and blue, stretching as far as the eye could see (we drove three hours alongside it). The road had become dirt by this point, and trees lined both sides of the road, only adding to the already scenic view. Small beaches popped up every here and there while local families swam in the water.

However, this was just the North side of the lake. I cannot verify, for I have not yet seen it, but I have been told that the southern side is actually much more scenic and has camels. I did, however make a second trip to the lake after arriving in Karakol, but instead of rewriting that story here, I'll direct you to the story. Please enjoy.

A Hitchhiker's Guide to Losing Cameras